Yep, that's about right.

A sponge (and chamois) traps dirt/contaminants left on the paint between the paint layer and the sponge layer. When you rub you are scratching your paint thus creating swirl marks.

Using a good, proper wash mitt (somehow) draws the dirt into the pile so when you rub the car there is nothing between the 2 layers to cause scratches.

You shouldn't rub with an MF towel either, just dab it on to soak up the water.

When I met AB in London he gave me loads of tips. Recently I went to visit a couple of detailers and they used a scourer on a test panel and showed me how to fix swirl marks using different abrasive polishes and then how to prevent swirls in the future.

It was a real eye opener <<-- i actually looked like that (without the nervous twitch).

 

mostly but stuf about chamois is wrong.

The correct way to use a chamois is to wring it our, open it fully and the apply it to the surface as if laying a table cloth so the it falls onto the surface. Then lift (don't drag) it off again.

Put simply pat don't wipe.